20111125

Harry's NY Bar celebrates its 100th in Paris

PARIS -- Harry's New York Bar turned 100 on Thanksgiving Day, one more milestone in the storied history of the iconic watering hole.

Harry's claims to be the home of the Bloody Mary, was a favorite stop for the author Ernest Hemingway, home to expatriate Americans and the glitterati.

As the establishment explains in its capsulized history, "In 1911, a former U.S. jockey convinced a friend who owned a bar in New York to dismantle it and to shift it Rue Daunou in Paris. Harry MacElhone is then approached to open the bar on Thanksgiving Day, 26 November 1911. The adventure starts!

"Since then, generations succeeded one another in this mythical place. Authors such as Hemingway, Sartre or Blondin came to taste a few of the most famous cocktails in the world which were created here, e.g the Bloody Mary or the White Lady."

Originally, the establishment was called simply the New York Bar. Harry MacElhone later added his own name.

"The MacElhone family is still at the helm of this legendary bar with the assistance of an excellent team fully dedicated to the bar and its customers. Harry transmitted the reins to Andrew who in turn passed them on to Duncan. Franz-Arthur, Harry's great-grandson, was born, like him, on June 16, 98 years down the line."

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